The Rise to Dawn : The Return of Abraham
by TheUndyingCrystal
Summary: After saving Primo from Byakuran, Abraham is cast into an alternate dimension. While trying to find Primo, he must attempt to find a way back to his Ivalice while fighting old enemies in new forms. This is parallel to K Entertainment's story, Clan Infamoux: Help Wanted!. :The usual warnings apply. OC bios submissions will be open at the fifth update:
1. A New Beginning

_My name is Abraham._

_For seventy years I was known as the Watcher in the Wings and the Seeker of the Abyss. And yet all those titles seem so dull in the end._

_I once served a godlike being, but was sundered from my master._

_For my entire life I've hunted that man to the ends of every dimension conceivable._

_For years I adventured across Ivalice, becoming the greatest hunting clan the world had ever known. But that power had a price. I was scarred permanently, unable to ever view the world of light again the same way. So I took on the Mask, and chose to become the Harbinger of Hunger. I took the Zodiac Spear itself for my own, the abandoned weapon of my greatest enemy. For decades I cut a swathe of death and destruction towards monsters and people alike as the Circle of Umbra grew in power._

_I discovered many amazing things in my travels. The Ascended Blades, the Spear, and I defeated the Wyrm-God Yiazmat in a battle for the ages. Woe is it that nobody ever knew that I had badly wounded the strongest dragon in existence and driven it off into a deep slumber. But it was that same day that I met Victor Blackheart and Stormwind Noel. Blackheart was an extraordinarily powerful lich, that far outmatched even the greatest mage in sheer magickal power. Noel was a member of the Blades, a group of women touched by the darkness that had learned to control such shadowy influences and power._

_Blackheart was defeated, and once again I saved Ivalice from a great evil._

_And then I made a promise._

_I would watch over a boy, and help him become a true hunter._

_That boy's name was Fiera. He would later be known as Big Bucket and Primo._

_Even as my clan corrupted itself from the influence of my Mask, and my wife began hungering for the power it represented, I remained his invisible guardian for most of his life. Even after I left the Circle and slew my own sons._

_Fiera became a great hunter, just as I had knew he would become._

_But the return of Hideyoshi Toyotomi and Byakuran marked the end of this golden age that I had protected for so long._

_I joined his clan, foreseeing the catastrophe that would occur so very soon._

_But something happened that I couldn't foresee._

_Byakuran became an immensely powerful being as a result of someone's meddling with powerful forces._

_I managed to save Primo, but the cost was great._

_Time itself froze. I found myself fighting a memory of Blackheart alongside Stormwind Noel, someone who had been missing since that day._

_I defeated Blackheart, and my reward was passage into the world of Pulse._

_But it was a trick._

_My name is Abraham, and I will not falter in my duty._

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The light faded, and I found myself kneeling in Rabanastre. The aerodrome was completely intact, the signs of the battle and terrorism caused by Byakuran nonexistent. My companion was absent as well.

"Noel?! Noel!" I called out urgently, but no answer.

Several people wandered past me, a few giving me odd looks. Something was wrong. This wasn't my home.

"This…is Rabanastre. But not my Rabanastre." I whispered as the truth dawned upon me. I must have been transported to a different world entirely.

"Are you okay?" I heard a strong and concerned feminine voice, one that I could detect a slight accent in.

I turned to face the speaker, and was immediately taken off-guard.

A beautiful young woman was standing in front of me, with an odd grin on her face. She had wild, spiky black hair that seemed to be wavy somehow. Her clothing consisted of a short black top, black sleeves over her forearm, sandals, two purple claw-shaped earrings, what appeared to be a pair of fur pelts hanging from her waist. Those pelts were strapped to a belt that looked as if it were meant to hold a weapon of some kind, and her strange clothing was completed with a unique blue robe-type clothing that was more like a cloth wrapped around her shoulder and extended down to her feet (_**Also known as a sari**_). Her left arm had a tattoo that vaguely resembled a dragon head, and the other had a white brand that especially caught my curiosity.

"You better be looking at my face, friend." I jerked, realizing my sight had lingered too long on her chest.

"Sorry." I apologized, standing awkwardly.

It was then I noticed, with no small shock, that I was normal. The Mask of Hunger had turned into a white, black, and red metal ring.

I wore clothes similar to the clothes Coela gave me that night before we started our journey to Rabanastre. A feather-weight set of grey armored clothing covered by a weathered grey trenchcoat, with matching black boots and gloves. My grey hair was combed back in a casual fashion that still was slightly messy, and my beard was also messy to an extent.

I also noticed that I was wearing my eyepatch again, over my right eye.

"…Hellllo?" Her voice brought me back to reality immediately.

"Oh, sorry. My name is Abraham." I introduced myself slowly, and extended my hand.

"Abraham, huh? Funny sort of name. Anyway, my name is Oerba Yun Fang, but just call me Fang." She shook my hand. I noticed her grip was very strong, despite her appearance.

"Nice to meet you, Fang…" I nodded, looking around as I trailed off.

Now what? I had no way of getting back to my own dimension at this point, and I had nobody here to trust enough to help me get back.

"You look distracted. Judging from the looks of you, you haven't a place to sleep or eat." She gave me a penetrating and sharp once-over.

"Yeah, I guess you could put it that way." I sighed irritably.

"Well, you could stay here and deal with the rainstorm coming tonight, or you could come with me. I've got a pretty big place that needs more guests." Fang offered in that tone of voice that was slightly condescending yet still friendly. Unfortunately, I didn't have much of a choice.

I spent a full minute thinking about my options. Either way it was obvious.

"…Sure. I'll come with you. Thanks for the assistance, Fang." I finally accepted.

"Great. Come on, my place is this way." She smiled and led me off.

I already had a bad feeling that I was going to get more than I bargained for out of this world. Either way, this was my best chance at finding Primo and getting the hell out of here.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

As he followed the woman off into the city, a man stepped out of the shadows.

He wore black robes heavily emblazoned with the X symbol.

His left eye was covered with his long black hair, and the other was bright gold.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Abraham…you made a mistake coming here. And that's a mistake I'll be sure to make you regret for the remainder of your miserable existence." He smiled evilly.

Victor Blackheart silently faded back into the shadows, leaving the street leading to the Rabanastre Gate empty. The Estersands nearby silently swirled.

_And that's where my story of this world began._

_**Thank you for reading. I intend this story to match up with K Entertainment's new story, Clan Infamoux: Help Wanted.**_

_**For those of you who've played FFXIII, you might recognize Fang. There will be other characters from other Final Fantasy's that'll appear through the course of the story. I'd also like to give out info on bios.**_

_**Roughly on my fifth update I'll put out a bio form.**_

_**As my new policy dictates, any bios are to be confined to PMing me. This new rule is mostly because of certain authors trying to be Fanfiction Police.**_

_**So please send them via PM, so I don't have them chewing on my ass.**_

_**Thank you,**_

_**TheUndyingCrystal**_


	2. Oerba Manor

Fang's house was more of a medium-sized manor in terms of sheer space.

"…Almost forgot to tell you. I've got a bit of a roommate. Her name's Vanille, so make sure to introduce yourself. She's a bit…odd, but then again…so are you." Fang suddenly broke in, completely derailing my line of thought. She was good at that, I immediately noticed.

"Thanks…I think." I muttered, and rubbed my side (I took a hard blow to the side when I fought the Blackheart illusion) as she fumbled with her keys.

Finally the door opened without the slightest whisper of a creak, exposing the entrance hall to my studious gaze.

It was magnificent. The tables were polished to the point of shining like crystals, and the entire manor was extremely well it.

As I basked in the sheer radiance of just this room, Fang simply walked in and flopped down on a couch.

"Ah…what a day." She sighed in the general ecstasy of someone who just sat down after a long day of work.

"Why so tired?" I asked curiously, still examining some of the furniture.

"I'm a hunter. You know, I go out and kill monsters for money?" She answered slowly, to my ironic indignation.

"I know what a hunter is. As a matter of fact, I'm one myself." I corrected her. That last sentence definitely interested her.

"A hunter, huh? Interesting." She mused, and I suddenly detected footsteps coming from another room.

A young girl with pinkish hair sort of…just "bounced" into the room dripping wet and completely naked. I caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a black version of Fang's white brand on her rear.

"Fang, we're out of towels—AGH!" She began, but then saw me.

"Hi." I spoke with an amused smile, and she let out an embarrassed squeal before bolting off.

I turned to Fang, and she had the same amused look on her face as well.

"Well, I introduced myself." I told her, and we both burst into laughter.

A few minutes later, Vanille reappeared (this time fully dressed). She had an odd-looking short skirt and a pair of stylish boots, and wore a pink sleeveless vest-like top decorated with several bead necklaces she wore loosely around her neck.

"Nice to meet you, Vanille." I introduced myself politely, and she smiled.

"Yeah, nice to meet you! Abraham, isn't it?" She shook my hand eagerly and energetically. I finally understood what Fang meant when she called Vanille "slightly odd".

"That's me, all right." I nodded in a friendly fashion, and Vanille took an empty chair.

I was sitting in a lodge chair across from her, and Fang was spread out on the couch lazily.

"So, Abe, tell us about yourself." Fang drowsily requested.

For some reason, her referring to me as Abe was extremely irritating.

"…I come from a place that isn't all that different from this land. I swore to protect someone…and I failed. I followed a gate here to see if I could find him and remedy my mistake." I managed to tell them enough to satisfy their curiosity but not enough to be telling _too_ much information.

"Sounds familiar. We come from a different place, too. It wasn't that bad, really. We were cursed by "heathen deities" and doomed to follow their whim or be turned into monsters." Fang explained, and I realized how similar that seemed to my story.

"So, you're not from Ivalice B, are you?" I finally asked pointedly, and she nodded.

"Yup, from a chaotic place called Pulse." She clarified and did an exaggerated stretch.

I found myself already tired as well. The lack of feeding in the past few weeks had drained me badly.

"…Do you have a spare bedroom I can sleep in?" I asked, my voice distant in thought.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Upstairs, second bedroom on the left. Trust me, there's about twenty bedrooms in this place capable of supporting two people in each. Make yourself at home." She answered drowsily, and finally stood.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm knocking off for the night. See you in the morning." Fang yawned, and started off to her bedroom. Vanille tagged along mere moments later.

I stood, and started off myself. I would need a lot of rest for the night, considering the situation I was in. Who knows when I might get a good rest again?

The bedroom was furnished well enough, with several display cases that were empty of their décor. An intricately made desk was also notable, as it was outfitted with plenty of parchment, a quill, and ink to write with.

After a long sigh, I removed my coat and wrapped it around the chair before sitting down. I slipped a small journal out from the inner pockets and opened it.

"…I wonder when I will find him. Perhaps tomorrow, perhaps never. But I would never forgive myself for not trying." I began writing, using my own quill that was marked with the Circle of Umbra's symbol.

_It was nothing short of muddled despair that first night. I had no help, no contact, and no definite way to get back to my Ivalice. I wasn't even sure Primo was here with me. All that kept me going was my will to do so and my promise._

_But I also had hope. These two strange travelers had arrived here somehow. If they could get in, there was definitely a way out._

_But little did I know I wasn't the only one that had arrived that same evening._

_But I was the only one that didn't want me dead._

_**Remember, reviews make my world go round. Even if it's just a couple words of encouragement, seeing another review pinned up on the screen definitely is an encouragement.**_


	3. The Seasalt Tavern

_**I will definitely be impressed if you recognize the names of the monsters that have been listed here. Monster Hunter fans, I salute you! And I also congratulate those who recognized the Regenerador from Resident Evil 4!**_

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_When the last hours of dawn waned and the morning finally made its appearance, I made my decision. I told Fang and Vanille of my long and storied past, from my defeat at Zertinan Caverns, the rise of the Circle of Umbra, Coela's betrayal, the murder of my sons, my promise to Montblanc, encountering the Ascended Blades, defeating Blackheart, watching over Fiera, and all the way to the very moment in which I arrived at Ivalice B. They were shocked to hear such a sordid past._

_I was very surprised when Fang, after a long period of silence, requested to know if I retained the Zodiac Spear. It was no small shock to me when the appearance of the Spear was much different. It was now a double-bladed sword that could easily become undone with the flick of the wrist and be wielded as dual blades. Each one was a bright white-silver color emblazoned with the symbols of Ra._

_But what most shocked me was how easy it was to wield them. The swords were light as a feather, but Fang claimed it was heavier than the giant turtle-like beasts that roamed the wilder planes of Ivalice._

_In short, I somehow knew that these blades were made for me._

_It still felt like wielding the Zodiac Spear, but it was so much more part of me._

_I was still able to summon them and dismiss them from nothingness as usual, but I also noted my sudden possession of a necklace that held a silver charm on it. It was made in the likeness of a sun, but with the same black star on the Circle's crest emblazoned upon the center._

_Finally, both Fang and Vanille invited me to go on an excursion to the Seasalt Tavern for a look-see on the board._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Sure, why not." I accepted slowly, and slipped on my trench coat.

I suddenly felt a hard object in one of the inside pockets. I was confused to find a hunter's license in it.

But it wasn't my original license. It was marked slightly differently, and I realized it had somehow transferred over from my Ivalice.

I was still marked as a Rank SSS.

Even in a different dimension, I was still me.

"Let's go." I allowed myself to smile as we left the manor and entered the city streets once more. The irony of that wasn't lost upon me.

The city didn't seem to be all that different, really. Archadian soldiers were still strolling about, which led me to the conclusion that the events of the battle between Vayne Solidor and the rebel army led by Marquis Ondore hadn't occurred yet in this dimension.

"…So strange. It feels like I'm walking down Muthru Bazaar, yet I feel it is not the same Bazaar I know." I thought out loud, and Fang let out a laugh.

"Yeah, I know. Felt the same way walking the Giza plane, to be honest. Almost felt like I was back on Pulse, really." She explained with a smile as we approached the Tavern. I took a moment of examine the outer details of the curious building.

It was much like the Sandsea, although it was slightly older and more weathered. I had never really gone into this particular tavern back in my Ivalice, due to my preference for the Sandsea and the quieter side of town.

Vanille skipped whimsically into the bar, and Fang held the door open for me.

"Hard to believe she's a fighter." I commented to her.

"Yeah, she's sort of what you might call a ditz." Fang smiled, and gestured to the ever so familiar board. It was covered with announcements, job requests, and most importantly the mark posters.

"…Mmmm…I dunno. Which one do you think is best?" She studied the available jobs for a few minutes, and finally turned to me.

I was shocked to find that most of the jobs on the board were completely new to me. I found an especially odd one involving something called a "Regenerador".

The drawing was a simple one, a clear depiction of a dark-grey skinned humanoid creature with an exaggerated mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. What shocked me even more was that it was listed as one of the more advanced and dangerous marks.

"...Maybe that one—" I began speaking, but Vanille cut in.

"The Khezu one! Right there!" She decided for us. Both of us facepalmed at her declaration. Finally, Fang shrugged at me.

I resolved to take a look at it. It was a good-paying job, and at a moderate difficulty. It appeared to be a grey wyvern-like creature with no eyes.

With no surprise on my part, I had no idea what a Khezu was.

"I'll take care of the details. It looks like our contractor is actually right here." Fang mused, taking the poster.

"Right. Then Vanille and I will meet you at the Westersands entrance." I nodded affirmatively, and led my energetic companion away from the tavern.

As I made my way through the crowd that was infesting the main square, I suddenly heard a great commotion.

I looked over to the east, and I saw a peculiar scene.

A Viera, likely a thief from the looks of the situation, was in the process of outrunning one of her victims. He was a young man, someone I didn't recognize.

"Give it back!" I heard him screech angrily as the Hume exerted himself further.

"Hmmm…" I debated whether to help him, but then I saw the someone following them. He was tall for his estimated age, and was definitely not weak. He had a very large sword, in the Buster style of the Midgard area from the Earth dimension (what an adventure that was. Some evil mastermind with an extremely long sword, and a guy wielding a huge blade similar to this person's).

I decided the unfortunate victim of this pickpocket didn't need help, and simply continued on. Something was bothering me, though; that boy seemed so familiar.

I cast such trivial concerns from my mind, and exited the city of Rabanastre to the entrance of the Westersands.

_**If you noticed my ever-so-subtle reference, congratulations. The unfortunate pickpocketing victim is none other than Birdie and the guy with the Buster Sword is…Primo (2).**_


	4. Hunting the Khezu

_As I discovered later, there was a reason that there were creatures that I had never heard of. Ivalice B wasn't an exact copy, obviously, and such an anomaly as this dimension caused extreme alterations in biological terms._

_Beasts that could walk in lava as if it was puddles of rainwater. Others that swam in the sand even more lithely and magnificently then the Sand-Sharks of the Urutan-Yensa Sandsea. Even gigantic and terrifying beasts that would put Yiazmat himself to shame in terms of size and power._

_But more importantly, it was this first hunt that led to my new beginning here._

"Abraham!" I heard Fang call from the other side of the street.

She had a red-colored two-pronged spear strapped to her back, an instant answer the observation I had made of her clothes yesterday.

"Our client gave me the location of the mark exactly, and warned us that there was another group of hunters already after it. So, he's making it a contest. Whoever can bring back proof of the beast's death will receive the reward" She explained, and tossed an odd-looking contraption towards Vanille.

It was whitish colored, and it took me a moment to even conceive a possibility of what this thing could be.

Vanille waved it in an exaggerated fashion, and it "unsheathed". It was two antlers attached to the handle with a strong rope-like cord. Obviously it was meant to be used as a special kind of whip.

"Ready then? Let's go." I began leading my fellow hunters out of the city limits.

The Westersands were more-or-less the same as I remembered them. Of course, it was hard to truly map them; the storms often changed the landscape radically.

As the march went on, it was Fang mostly who was leading us. She was the only one who knew the mark's location, so I was demoted to the second in line position. Hopefully this beast wasn't too difficult.

"So, tell me about the Khezu. I've never heard of or seen one before." I broke the silence that had dominated the scalding trip.

"It's a pretty powerful, mid-sized Wyvern. It has grey skin that is generally electric-resistant and described as being flabby. Despite its lack of sight, it has a keen sense of smell, and therefore uses it to hunt. It can generate an electric field around its body, or can fire a sphere of pure lightning across the ground. It is also pretty stealthy, too." Fang gave me a general description of the beast, something which interested me greatly.

Apparently, it mostly lived in damp caves, cold environments, swamps, and occasionally the jungles of Rozzaria.

"…Lightning element…generally slow to anger…seems like a dangerous but predictable creature." I noted, and Fang nodded in assent.

"Yeah, it's remarkable for being pretty stupid sometimes, but it can be very cunning and sneaky when it comes to ambushes. Some can even climb on cave ceilings and hang upside down." She added.

"Look!" Vanille interrupted the conversation, and pointed to something over the ridge she was standing on.

I looked myself, and was momentarily awed.

A huge cave entrance stretch out in a small canyon before us. Stalagmites and stalactites towered over us like the fangs of a monster.

I also noticed the large camp spread out in front of it.

It appeared to be the temporary homes of several people, but only one person seemed to be present.

Fang gave me a small spyglass, and I used it to study the camp.

"It appears our competitors for the reward have beaten us here. I know weapon crates and cases when I see them." I sighed.

The only resident was a Hume. She had short, bright-blonde hair, and wore armor that I knew to be for surveillance and reconnaissance operatives.

What also briefly worried me was the scoped rifle she had on her shoulder.

"We'll have to move fast. I don't know if they play dirty, but I won't risk it. Hopefully she'll be reasonable enough to surrender and let us through." I shared my plan, and both Fang and Vanille agreed to it.

I slipped between the dunes and trees sparsely placed throughout the canyon, avoiding any possible detection as Fang and Vanille followed carefully.

Within minutes we had reached their camp without detection.

It was hesitantly that I showed myself to the Hume with my hands up.

"W-Whaaa!? How did you get this far?!" She stuttered, shifting her gun and pointing it directly at me.

"Listen…I've got a couple of friends behind me that are perfectly ready to kill you the minute I drop. If you let us into the cave without any problems, everybody can walk away with our lives none for the worse." I told her slowly and carefully, but she instantly panicked the moment I revealed that I had reinforcements.

Our only obstacle into the cave dropped her gun and fled into the caverns.

"Shit." I swore, and took off after her. I didn't know much about Khezus, but I knew if there was a monster still in here someone without a weapon would be an easy meal.

If only I had known, I would've hoped it would be a fate that kind.

I caught up to her in a large chamber that ended at a small underground pond full of fresh water.

"Please…! Don't hurt me!" She was still panicking, and nothing I said would calm her. My desperation to calm her hindered me from noticing the head silently descending to our level.

It was simply a grey piece of flesh that could extend to amazing lengths. It had no eyes, and only possessed a red mouth with several razor-like teeth, perfect for catching something and swallowing it whole, without even chewing it.

I realized it too late, and was unable to even warn her. Instead of closing around her head it caught her by the leg and ascended, carrying its screaming prey with it. I sent several blasts of fire magick towards the black ceiling, but nothing was there. It had already made its exit deeper into the caves. Her screams of pain were still echoing through the cavern.

Fang and Vanille finally caught up to me, both of them breathing hard.

"She got taken by it. We'd better find it while we can still hear her screams, or we'll get picked off in the darkness." I explained, and sprinted off towards the only tunnel entrance available, my two companions close behind.

After several minutes of running, we were rewarded with an intersection. Two pathways beckoned to us, and neither gave a hint of being the one we needed to traverse. Her screams were closer, but we couldn't pinpoint it.

"Damn. We'll take right for about ten minutes, and if we don't get anything we'll come back and hit the left." I spoke quickly, and took off down the right tunnel. Fang and Vanille were close behind, and they were capable of matching my speed for the time being.

"Well, then. I think we've got something." Fang commented as we reached the end. In front of us, a sizable expanse of cavern was the nest of our mark. The kidnapped woman was lying on the ground, still moaning in pain. The Khezu, on the other hand, was examining her slowly. The sound of it utilizing its powerful sense of smell echoed through the cavern, and somehow I had the feeling it wasn't going to eat her. But the feeling that told me that she was in mortal danger was just as strong.

I prepared to attack, but Fang stopped me.

"Look." She quietly explained and pointed.

The wyvern evidently had made some sort of decision, and carefully grasped the folds of her pants. And then it began to pull. Not too harshly, but just enough to remove them.

She was too exhausted to do anything but struggle feebly as her lower undergarments were revealed.

"What are we waiting for—oh shit." I realized just in time. I had noticed similar behavior in other marks I'd hunted before.

_Some wyverns and monsters didn't breed the conventional way; they instead had parasitic larva that they usually implanted inside a host._

_Most chose larger beasts, due to their relative ignorance of smaller monsters._

_But occasionally, a Hume or other sentient being had the misfortune of being the bearer of its children. As a result, human hosts died quickly._

She tried to crawl away, but it was far too late for that.

It settled down awkwardly, pressing against her face-down body forcefully but carefully. A sudden jerk that both sent a twitch throughout both their bodies signaled the beginning of her doom. Evidently its victim found new energy, as she began screaming at an even louder octave of pain and agony.

Fang slowly and quietly prepared her spear, the two folded prongs sliding into a lethally sharp position. Before I could question her, she slipped off into the darkness. Vanille shrugged at me when I gave her a quizzical glance.

"Goddamn it." I swore and drew my swords, preparing to attack.

Just as it finished raping her, a crimson streak flashed across the cave. Fang's spear imbedded itself in the Khezu's side, causing it to scream in pain and rage.

The Pulsian herself sped across the cavern, and Fang retrieved her spear with a sickening twist that splattered the floor and her with light blue goopy blood.

I took it as a signal to make my violent entrance along with Vanille.

"**Umbral Slash**!" My swords began glowing with dark energy as I sent a purple-hued blast towards it. The resulting explosion cost the beast its balance, which sent several hundred pounds of wyvern flying across the ground.

"**Jump**!" Fang leapt into the air with an impossible jump, slamming her weapon with immense force into its vulnerable body.

However, with a shudder the Khezu's entire body arced with electricity just before her attack landed. Her spear was thrown to the side, and Fang was slammed into a wall.

"Vanille! Keep it busy!" I ordered her as I urgently rushed to her side.

"**Fire**!" I heard Vanille launch several spells towards the beast, and the resulting screams of rage attested to her accuracy and general effectiveness in magickal power. I reached her without any resistance and checked her pulse. Alive, thank whatever gods there may be.

"…Ugh…I…took a…pretty big hit…didn't I…?" Fang chuckled, and clutched her stomach in pain. Blood was pouring from an open wound just below her breasts, and she was covered in scratches and burns (though it appeared her clothes had more-or-less protected her).

"Stay down. We'll take care of it." I ordered her, and she nodded with another cough. Another scream and explosion alerted me to the fact that Vanille was definitely in need of assistance.

"**Triple Slash**" I prepared my attack as I sped towards the monster, but I was taken off guard. A sphere of pure lightning formed at its mouth and it fired them like a gun. The sphere split into three smaller ones that slammed into me like a cannonball. I slammed into the ground, forming a small crater as the Khezu approached me. With a leisurely movement it stepped on me with a powerful foot and held me down, preventing me from even being able to move.

Vanille's attacks were the least of the monster's concerns, and it opened its fang-lined mouth in anticipation.

"C'mon, you ugly bastard. Do it already." I taunted impatiently, and it began to close its jaws around my head.

However, the sickly thud of something moving at several thousand miles per hour hitting flesh gave me pause.

The Khezu had frozen in place, albeit briefly. A nice helping of goopy lifeblood poured out on me.

It staggered back (letting go of me in the process) and let out a pained scream. Someone had put a bullet directly in the side of its head.

Taking advantage of the situation, I grasped my swords hastily.

"**Execution**." I whispered simply as I seemingly phased from in front of it to behind it. My goop-covered blades attested to what happened next.

It fell apart, having been bisected by my final attack. Wyvern guts spilled out upon the rocky surface, and the goopy blood of the Khezu flooded the area around the two pieces. The smell of wyvern blood choked the air.

I cleaned my blades off on the corpse and wiped my face as Vanille approached, helping a wounded Fang along.

But what had my utmost attention were the two figures approached from the other side of the cavern. Both were definitely women.

The first had short but extremely bright dark red hair, if that was possible. She wore dark grey cargo pants like the original woman from earlier, but wore older boots, a brown weathered bomber jacket with a white shirt underneath that seemed to show a flag design of some kind. She also wore fingerless gloves, a pocket on the side appeared to be filled with small grenades, and the bomber jacket had an advanced armband covered with electronic buttons and a screen on her right arm.

The other wore a darker outfit, and was definitely less outlandish. She had short black hair that was neatly combed to the sides, an advanced gas mask that covered the lower part of her face (a notable feature of which was two glowing bright blue bulb-like inhalers on each side), a simple dark blue zippered jacket that had grey lines pointing vertically every inch or so, gloves, a pair of dark blue cargo pants that seemed to be filled with medical equipment of some sort, and simple black combat boots.

The first woman had a scoped rifle on her shoulder, one much more advanced than the one the unfortunate victim had on her, and the other carried a small pistol along with a large grey metal case.

"Who the fuck are these wankers?" The flamboyant one demanded, hefting the rifle threateningly.

"I could ask you the same." I replied evenly.

"Don't recognize any of them, but they're definitely skilled hunters." The other studied us thoughtfully.

"My name is Abraham, the wounded one is Fang, and the younger woman is Vanille." I introduced myself after a long pause in which the first woman glared at me. Finally the second motioned for her to get out of the way.

"Damn it, Sienna." The first swore as the second examined the victim. During the fight the Khezu larva, or whelps as I later learned, had already eaten their way out and escaped. Her stomach was torn open, and she was covered in mud and dirt from the filth of the cave. As I offered the first woman my coat to cover her naked body (she still wore her torso armor, but it didn't make sense to call her half-naked) out of respect and modesty. It was grudgingly that my offer was accepted.

"My name's Christine, but people call me Four Eyes. That's Marissa, but everyone calls her Tweed." Christine stood after a long silence of respect towards their fallen friend.

"Her name was Sienna Fowler, but everyone called her Party Girl. Long story of how she got the nickname, but we'd fought and travelled with her for almost ten years." Tweed whispered darkly, and stood to face me.

"I'm sorry. We didn't mean to drive her in here. Trust me when I say that I went in after her the moment she panicked." I apologized as honestly as I could.

Without a word, Tweed simply picked up the body gently and carried it towards the exit. I retrieved the Khezu's heart as the proof of the beast's demise.

None of us spoke a word as Christine and Tweed dug a grave for Sienna.

As Christine finished the last of the grave, Marissa removed the last of her armor and buried their fallen comrade.

We simply stood there, unable to really do or say anything about it.

I whispered my own words of prayer towards her grave, honoring her grave.

It was then I vowed never to forget her.

_**Thank you for reading my latest update. As a reminder, OC bios will be open for submission when the next update has been submitted.**_

_**Remember to PM me any bios, as per rules.**_

_**Anyway, I'd like to take a moment to remember September 11, 2001.**_

_**Although the victims of this terrible tragedy may never recover, we must remember to live on for those people who will never be given the chance to do more in life.**_

_**Thank you.**_


	5. The Blades of the Dawn

_Twenty years ago…_

_Phantom Miria surveyed the battlefield, trying to pinpoint the most concentrated groups of enemy forces. Hundreds of monsters swarmed through the canyon, their fury and chaotic devastation directed towards Rabanastre._

"_Riful, I need you to lead your squad to the northern exit. We need that area covered to a greater extent." She ordered confidently and quickly._

_A young girl, no older than 12 (at the very most), dressed in the Blades uniform nodded. She had long blonde hair that was cut spiky at the ends, like sharp blades of ice to match her personality._

"_Right!" She nodded, and led several Blades in that direction._

_I appeared, my black cloak contrasting with their white uniforms._

"_Miria! We need to fall back! The inner defense has prepared artillery!" I called urgently, but she shook her head._

"_My comrades are too spread out and entrenched! We'd lose more lives than we'd save falling back!" She explained irritably, her normally emotionless face having changed to one of distressed thought._

"_We have to! The artillery will completely annihilated anything standing in this canyon in less than four minutes!" I pressed, blasting away a wolf in the process with a wave of my hand._

"_Damn it…shit. They're here." She swore when several larger beasts burst through the small entrance to the Zertinan caverns._

"_Fall back! Fall back!" Tabitha appeared, her cool and calculated demeanor unchanged by the battle._

_The Ascended Blades began retreating, giving the ground they had fought so hard for in moments. Helen, Deneve, and Cynthia made their appearances, having already called their squads back long ago._

"_Miria, we need to move! Those Titantoises will be in attack rage in less than three minutes!" Deneve urged her, several of her wounded soldiers escaping the battlefield. Their wounds would heal before they'd get to the defensive line._

"_Riful's squad hasn't reported in!" Tabitha informed us, and Miria swore._

_Just in the distance, I could see they were overwhelmed._

_Dozens of redirected wolves and other monsters flooded the narrow bottleneck, and even the battle-hardened warriors couldn't fend off such a huge force._

_Her squad-mates were slaughtered, and Riful herself was badly wounded and trying to keep away the ravening beasts._

"_I'll get her." I jumped off the overlook, and sped towards the young soldier._

_Just before I reached her, it only took me a second to realize that her dark energy had overflowed past her limits many times over._

_She lifted her head, and gave me a simple glance. Her eyes glowed pure gold and she already begun changing._

_Her claymore was cast away to the wind, slamming into a nearby rock wall. I barely stopped myself and landed a few feet away from her as the transformation occurred. Her uniform ripped away, and her body changed into a mass of cobalt-black strip-like tentacles._

_The mass of tendrils began forming into a conceivable form, and the true Awakened Form of Riful was revealed to us._

_She was nearly three times the size of the average human (not counting her base), and was composed completely of those tentacles._

_Above her lower torso, she had the appearance of a woman made of the tendrils. She had breasts, normal but powerful arms, and glowing red eyes._

_Her "hair" was long and merely part of the body._

"_Well…that…felt so good." An inhumane but feminine voice that was much like Riful's echoed through my ears. She retained herself even in this form._

"_Riful?" I asked carefully._

_I was answered with an attack. Several tendrils of her body impaled themselves in me with ease._

_I moved backwards in shock, and she took them out._

_The Awakened Being lifted one of her comrade's corpse, and sniffed it._

_To my shock and relative disgust, she devoured the entire body._

"_Disgusting. It tastes like crap. You probably won't be any better…so maybe I'll get some normal people for dinner. I can smell several of them beyond those cliffs." She complained, and started off towards that way. Beneath her torso was simply a mass of tentacles organized into a circular pattern taking up several feet._

_A blow to the back of the head was enough to give her pause._

"_Sorry, but they aren't on the menu." I told her coolly._

"…_Pfft. Fine, then. You may not taste so good, but you'll make a good pre-meal." Several tentacles lashed out at me, and I narrowly dodged._

_Miria and the rest of the Five appeared, brandishing their claymores._

"_Well, well…willing to kill one of your own? Shameful." Riful mocked her former leader, who clasped her sword tightly._

"_You're no longer one of us. The moment you let your darkness take control you lost us as your sisters." She shook off the insult unflinchingly._

"_Oh, come on! Try it! It feels so good…so exhilarating!" The former soldier smiled persuasively._

"_Go take it up the ass, Riful!" Helen retorted, her usual colorful language already in play._

"_I'll have to decline that offer. Sorry." Deneve shook her head with a smirk._

"_I'm sorry about this, Riful, but you know what we have to do." Cynthia sadly responded._

"_Sorry, but I'd rather not be a monster." Tabitha shook her head._

"_Well…there you have it, Riful. None of the Blades are going to betray their humanity for something as cheap as that." Miria smiled triumphantly, and the Awakened Being flinched._

"_Grr….You…you'll pay for this, Miria. I swear, one day…I will kill you myself." Riful growled angrily and she disappeared in a cloud of tendrils that simply sped off into the sky._

_I, after a few moments, went after her._

_It took me a full week to finally give up on the search for the Awakened Being. Evidently she was in hiding, biding her time._

_Never again I saw Riful._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I jolted from my sleep.

We were still in the camp. I had dozed off a few hours ago, apparently.

"About time the sleepyhead's up." Tweed appeared, her eyes still daggers towards me. I shook my head irritably, and stood.

"Sorry. I haven't had a good night of sleep for weeks." I explained, and put my coat back on.

"…Thanks, anyway. A lot of people would've let Sienna die. The fact you went in after her without a second thought tells me you're not that bad a person." She spoke, her accent (_**English/British**_) cutting into her words.

"Which is why we want to join you." Christine appeared. Her mask was off, revealing the lower features of her face.

"The hyper one with the antler stick convinced us that we should merge our hunting groups." Tweed explained.

"Vanille? She…convinced you?" Hard to believe, but apparently true.

"Yup. Your girlfriend already agreed." She continued, to my chagrin.

"F-Fang is not my girlfriend." I stuttered irritably, and both women gave each other a smile.

"Either way, she told us the whole story. Fair, I suppose, since we're travelers like you and them. Your whole history and theirs. Figure we might as well stick together, since we don't have a house or anywhere to really stay." Christine dropped the matter with a smile, and returned to her explanation.

"…So we're forming a clan, now are we?" I couldn't resist letting out a raspy laugh.

"That's completely right. Of course, since you didn't have much choice on the vote, you get to come up with the name." Fang appeared. She was cleaned up, and her more serious wounds were bandaged up.

"…Dawn Blades." At first I was completely clueless to any possible idea I could've conceived, but I somehow just blurted out those two words. They just came to mind somehow. Almost seemed like providence.

My four other clanmates looked and each other and seemed to be in deep thought before letting out a loud cheer.

"Congratulations, Rank SSS. You're our new leader." Tweed tossed me my hunter's license. I hadn't even realized she had taken it.

"…Heh…it feels a lot like it did before, when I started the Circle of Umbra. But it also feels different. Like it's a new path. A rise to dawn. A chance to redeem myself." I spoke, looking at my new clan-mates as I gave them my speech.

"Twenty gil says he makes Fang his second." Tweed whispered to Christine with a mischievous smile.

"Fang, you're officially now the second of the clan. Vanille, you're third. Four Eyes and Tweed are the first official members of the Dawn Blades!" I announced, and the quiet sound of money changing hands was heard ever so briefly.

It was then immediately decided that it would be a good time to start the journey back, and that if we made good time the Dawn Blades would be back home before the darkness of night consumed the land.

We assisted Tweed and Four Eyes in taking down the camp and packing their gear up before starting the long journey back home.

I held my head high, the hope that dawn had brought allowing me to once again believe that redemption was possible for me.

Ironically enough, Fang was certainly acting weird towards me. Almost…flirtatious more than just respectful or her usual fiery personality.

Less than a day, conveniently enough, a letter arrived.

Unexpectedly, it read that the entire clan was invited to the upcoming royal dinner that was being hosted by the soon-to-arrive Vayne Solidor.

Apparently, the client that had hired us to slay the Khezu was a high-ranking Archadian official that wanted us to come along.

"I don't like it. Smells like a load of codswallop to me." Tweed voiced her disapproval the moment I finished telling the rest of my clan-mates about the invite.

I had met Vayne once, back in my Ivalice. It was during his original visit to Rabanastre. It was a meeting that I remembered still. His eyes were cold and sharp as a snake's, a trait I made note of immediately. I didn't trust his conniving personality and especially not his intelligence. Those two traits combined made for a very dangerous man.

"I don't know…meeting and getting to know a lot of powerful people might be beneficial for the clan as a whole. In the long run, it could get us a lot of contracts…or at least a night to remember." Four Eyes mused as she studied a book, one that the scientist had been reading since our first meeting.

"I'll agree with Christine about that. It could get us a lot of influence and reputation. Or, again, an excuse to get drunk on valuable wynes." Fang offered her opinion.

"I think it'll be fun! We should definitely go." Vanille broke in, invoking their collective sighs and my facepalm.

"I guess we're going to a party tonight, then." I finally decided, to Tweed's groan and the other three girl's smiles.

I dismissed them to prepare for tonight, and took my own leave to my quarters. I made a beeline for the Zodiac Blades.

Of course, just because it was a party, it didn't mean I wouldn't be taking my weapons. As I sheathed my twin swords after putting my coat on, Fang appeared.

"Sure you're going to a party?" She quipped.

"Archadians are slippery bastards…especially rich ones. I wouldn't trust any among them to hold a single gil for me." I explained, and looked in a mirror to check for any possible damage to my armor that I hadn't repaired from the recent hunt. To my ignorance, Fang had slowly been stepping closer to me.

"You know…I was a little shocked when you stopped the fight the moment I got hurt." Her voice got much quieter.

"Well, yes…um…of course…I had to make sure you weren't too hurt." I stammered, coughing to try to preserve my composure.

Her proximity to me definitely was making me nervous.

"Why so nervous, Abraham?" She whispered quietly, being very close to me.

I stepped back, stumbling on the second step, and coughed again.

"Ahem…well…I…damn it…" I stuttered, and silently swore at myself. The only other woman who'd ever made me so nervous and hesitant was Coela.

"Well? How about I give you a little hint, if you can't figure out why." She pressed me against the wall and kissed me. It wasn't a short and lustful one, either. It was long, passionate, and something I found myself liking very much.

She wrapped her arms around my body, and I found myself doing the same with her as she kept me pressed against the wall.

I wasn't sure how much time had passed, but she eventually parted her lips from mine.

"I-I…well…ahem…" I was unable to form a coherent sentence, and barely a word at that.

"See ya. Don't take too long getting ready." Fang teased as if nothing had happened before disappearing from the room.

I fell back onto my bed, still stunned from the kiss.

At some point I willed myself to finish getting ready, and joined my comrades downstairs.

They were dressed in their normal clothing, except Four Eyes wasn't wearing her gas mask, Fang had left her spear upstairs, Tweed had generally stashed away most of the armory of small but powerful explosives she had in her bomber jacket. Vanille had also put away her whip-antler contraption, and everyone had generally cleaned themselves up and neatened their appearance.

I had combed my hair back, straightened my short beard, fixed my eye patch, and my coat and armor looked much newer and cleaner than before. I proudly wore the Mask of Hunger's ring and the Zodiac Spear's pendant.

"Everyone ready? Let's go." I surveyed my subordinates, and led them out of the manor towards the palace.

_Had I known of the disaster that would occur there, I would've stayed home, burned that damn invitation, and would never speak of it again._

_Obviously enough, I had won Fang's affections and she had won mine. Ironic how similar my fresh start here was to forming the Circle of Umbra._


	6. The Party

"Abraham, Dawn's Guard. I was invited here by the current Magister of Commerce as reward for services well rendered." I explained to the gate guards, handing over the invitation.

"Checks out. Head on in, and have fun." He nodded gruffly, and waved us past.

The insides of the palace of Rabanastre were heavily furnished, the detail and effort put into the artwork and architecture clear.

"Remember…talk to people. Make friends." I reminded them quietly as we stepped into the main hall.

It was even more lavishly decorated than the entrance hallway, and crowds of nobles were spread about.

Tables filled with unique cuisines and expensive drinks were prime gathering points for them, and I knew that was where I needed to start.

I nodded at them to go about their separate ways, and headed off towards the first dining table.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Hours had passed quickly, so quickly I hadn't even realized what time it was.

I could safely say mission accomplished, as multiple Archadian nobles had been greatly impressed by the fact we killed such a monster.

Several even promised that they would be contacting me soon.

I said my goodbyes, and gathered with my clan members.

"Well?" I asked expectantly.

"Me and Vanille made plenty of new friends, don't you worry about that." Fang promised lightheartedly.

"I *ahem* shared some information about the Khezu with the scholars from Draklor. Apparently they had been dying for some combat data on the wyvern." Four Eyes reported with a nod.

"Yeah, yeah…I talked it up with some people. Shared some drinks. Maybe made a couple of—what the hell?!" Tweed began speaking, but a sudden crash interrupted us.

Two young men had been cornered by Archadian guards, having been chased through the entire palace.

One I recognized to be the boy with the large greatsword from the morning chasing after the pickpocket.

The other looked to be more of a soldier type, and was more-or-less unremarkable to my standards otherwise.

They had small wounds all over their bodies, and were just barely keeping the guards away.

Without hesitation I joined the guards, drawing my dual swords.

"What's this about?" I demanded from one of the soldiers, and he was huffing from the effort of fighting.

"They tried to assassinate the consul, the emperor's son himself!" He explained, and I turned to the one with the greatsword.

"Kid, is this true?" I spoke carefully.

"I'm not a kid, and yes it is true!" He responded irritably, the exhaustion of battle even more defined upon him.

"Look, if you surrender I can make sure you get a fair trial." I tried to convince him to back down. Fang, Vanille, Four Eyes, and Tweed were already behind me, their weapons ready.

"There's no justice in an Archadian court." The other spoke darkly.

"Last chance." I warned, and the boy readied himself.

He had underestimated me severely, and that was my advantage.

I phased behind the second one and landed a swift blow to the back of his head, knocking him unconscious almost instantly.

The boy raised his sword and swung it directly towards my head. It was surprising how fast he managed to relocate me and strategize.

It was, of course, ineffective.

I ducked the swing and landed a hard kick at his stomach, forcing him to drop his blade.

Effortlessly I then knocked him out in the same fashion as I had done with his cohort.

But what disturbed me was when I got a clear look at his face.

The moment he dropped to the ground I was near frozen.

For I knew the boy with the greatsword, and he was part of the reason I came here in the first place.

_Primo_


	7. Emperor Alexander III

_In an instant, the guards had dragged their sorry charges out of the dining hall with irritable gusto and vigor._

_Naturally I was shaken from the incident. Why was Primo here, of all places? He should've recognized my voice, so why didn't he? How did he meet with his companion?_

_Those questions rattled throughout my mind for many days, and the request to meet with the two was denied. That contributed quickly to my anxiety and impatience. But even with that, the most important event that happened tonight was yet to come._

_The arrival of Alexander._

"So you're positive about him? That he's Primo?" Fang asked again.

We had made our exit from the party shortly after, both Four Eyes and Fang having noticed I was fuming and ready to explode.

Now I was simply on the roof of the manor, looking out over the smaller buildings and the bulk of Rabanastre.

"Yes. That was him." I answered quietly.

It had taken all of my self-control to hold in such a destructive and anger-fueled rage. Most of it had long faded, but I was still cautious. I was extremely dangerous when I was angry the last time, and I didn't intend on losing control again.

"What do you intend to do? Because we're right behind you." She pressed on carefully.

"Do what? Something's wrong with him, Fang, but I'm not sure what. It's possible he's suffering from amnesia or mind-control, but I already think I know. It's just that I can't accept it. This is an alternate reality, and therefore it is extremely likely that the Primo that attempted to assassinate the consul tonight was his counterpart in this world." I explained darkly.

She tried to comfort me with a squeeze on the shoulder, but I showed no reaction. Fang tried again, this time with a hug. I finally had the heart to tell her.

"I'm sorry…it's just…I can't do this, Fang." I began, my own voice breaking.

"Yes, you can. You're the strongest person I've ever met, and I've met some pretty damn strong people." She insisted.

"Everything I've ever touched has fallen into ruin. Coela…the Circle of Umbra…even Primo. I can't do this to you, too." My words were barely discernable.

"That is not true, goddamn it! You are not a bad person, Abraham!" She grasped my shoulders and looked me in the eye as she spoke.

"What have I ever done right? What haven't I destroyed?" I answered softly, my voice breaking.

"You have me." She answered simply, and hugged me tightly. It was then I realized she was crying herself.

At first, the feeling of her body against mine barely registered, but as she stood there in my arms I felt the warmth emanating from her.

Neither of us spoke a single word for that entire time, just the sound of her sobbing.

"**How romantic, yet so sickeningly dull**" A voice echoed throughout the night, and I let go of Fang to scan the roof.

Moments later I found him. The speaker was standing several feet away from us, and I could see why he had sounded so odd.

To put it loosely, he was overdressed in armor. His main gear consisted of an entirely gold set of body armor that was lavishly designed and decorated, and a giant black cloak to wear over it. The cloak was obviously armor as well, since the inner edges of it were lined with shiny grey scales. On his shoulders were two pauldrons, each with two blackened spikes on them, and he wore long black gauntlets that reached all the way to his elbows and covered the coat already covering his arms. Most intriguing was his helmet.

It was a crown-like piece to be heavily admired, and certainly looked valuable. It was blackened grey metal, the top part of the helm covered with spikes that stretched towards the sky. A single cross-like slit remained in the helmet, each curved slit emanating from a single point to the opposite ends of the face, and the third pointing downwards. I could only see blackness there. A large crack was notable on the left side of the helm where the eye would be.

Anyone wearing such heavy gear would be tremendously slowed down, so it was natural to assume he was extremely strong and had a lot of stamina.

"Who are you!?" I demanded angrily, and he let out a menacing laugh that sent chills down our spines.

"**You know me as Emperor Alexander III, the Emperor of Archadia.**" He answered, his voice heavy and deliberate.

"Alexander III? That was the fifth emperor of Archadia, from centuries ago." Fang whispered cautiously.

I drew my swords menacingly, trying to warn him off.

"**So you are Abraham, keeper of the Mask of Hunger. I am also known as Zuuphadt richt alkdnl vanar, Keeper of the Helm of Malice.**" He was studying me intently, seemingly indifferent to my attempts at intimidation.

"Another Mask keeper? Shit." I was now extremely worried.

The Mask of Hunger was by no means the strongest of the Plagues of Mankind, and certainly was beaten by an artifact like the Helm of Malice.

"**I wonder…why have you come to a wretched place such as this? A place soon to die?**" He continued, his voice naturally slow and deliberate.

"What do you mean?" I asked suspiciously.

"**This Ivalice is nothing but a shard of reality, twisted and molded into the shape of the original. But as you know, fakes are destined to fade into nothingess.**" He answered blithely, and held his right hand out in front of him.

The wind picked up around us, and darkness formed around him.

"**And now, Abraham…Watcher in the Wings and Seeker of the Abyss, you will show me your strength. Show me the full power of Hunger, before I strike you down!**" A black double-bladed sword formed from the darkness, and an axe formed in his left hand. It was made to be used two-handed, but he effortlessly wielded it as if it were a feather. The axe itself was shining silver with a black length with which he held it, and the blade was covered in glowing orange symbols. With a leisurely tap several fang-like serrated teeth extended down the entire edge of the axe, making it even more devastating to use.

He took his stance, and the two glowing red eyes flashed from the eye-slits of his helm. The wind was blowing as if it were a hurricane, but nothing was being destroyed.

"FANG! Get out of here!" Heeding my advice, she took her exit quickly.

I drew my blades and prepared as well. Alexander, I could already tell, was no amateur fighter; he was a deadly and powerful warrior.

Instead of attacking head-on as I expected, he phased in a flash of crimson-tinged shadow and appeared behind me. I barely dodged the axe swing as the ground where I stood a mere second ago was crushed.

"_**RAGE**_**!**" Both his weapons suddenly began glowing crimson, and he launched himself towards me at a speed that one wouldn't expect due to such heavy armor.

"**Barrier**!" I barely managed to cast the protective spell, which formed an shielding barrier against the attack.

Alexander broke through it easily, and landed a hard blow against me. I went flying halfway across the city, and crashed finally into a small house.

"_**Guillotine**_!" He phased again, travelling the immense distance in less than a second, and spoke that word. His axe began glowing, and he lifted it in the air above my crumpled body.

"**Ichor Blast**!" A blast of golden energy slammed into him, breaking his attack and putting him into the ground this time. A crater half the size of a house formed around Alexander's body as he crashed into the solid stone pathway.

"**Not bad. I suppose you're not that pathetic, considering you managed to hit me. But that can't go unpunished, either.**" As I looked over the edge to check on him, he had his chance. Alexander phased behind me and drove the end of his double-bladed sword right into my back.

"GAHH!" I let out a shocked gasp as I felt the cold and unnatural dark metal of the blade enter my body. He didn't much care for savoring my pain and threw me to the ground, taking the sword out. Both his weapons faded as he studied me.

"**Here's some advice for you, Abraham. Leave this plane, and never return. Abandon your search for Primo, or suffer the consequences.**" He warned shortly and disappeared into the shadows, leaving me in the wake of the ruined buildings.

_Apparently, it took Fang and the others several hours to locate me amongst the wreckage and destruction. I was badly wounded, and it would take me weeks to fully recover. Most injuries, even serious ones, I could heal within seconds due to my power, but injury from the other Keepers was much more difficult to regenerate. Naturally, I didn't intend to heed his warning; I was going to find Primo no matter what and get him back home._

_**Emperor Alexander III**_

_**Seventh emperor of the Archadian Empire. He is renowned for turning the nation of Archadia into a militaristic empire that endures to this day. Also known for his possession and use of the Helm of Malice, a powerful magickal artifact that is unimaginably old.**_

_**He was killed in battle by a young woman with silver eyes, blonde hair, and a markedly odd silver claymore. Some have compared the appearance of this woman with the legendary Ascended Blades.**_

_**Whatever the circumstances of his death, Alexander III was a cruel and psychopathic emperor to both his subjects and his enemies. Feared by his friends and even his family, and even more hated and terrified of by his enemies.**_

_**-Excerpt from the novel "Archadian Emperors and their Legacies"**_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

_**Well, it's time. Time for what? Time for bios, of course!**_

_**As per rules, all bios must be PMed to me. I've thoughtfully provided a premade template for use, so use it well.**_

_**A small note: characters do NOT have to be entirely OC. You can use characters that already exist in other media or such things on my bios, but try to make it sound plausible; aliens and other characters wouldn't make sense here.**_

_**Name:**_

_**Gender:**_

_**Age:**_

_**Race:**_

_**Physical Appearance:**_

_**Weapons:**_

_**Clothing/Armor:**_

_**Special Abilities:**_

_**Personality:**_

_**Combat Speciality:**_

_**Background:**_


	8. Decision

"Abraham!" I woke up with a start. Fang was standing over me along with the other members of the Dawn Blades.

"You okay?" Four Eyes asked worriedly.

I stood with some difficulty, and clutched the spot where he had pierced me with his sword. Despite my regenerative abilities, my wound wasn't healing as it should.

"Yeah…I'm fine. Doesn't matter." I answered dismissively and sat back down with a pained groan.

Tweed was standing in the corner smoking when she finally let out an impatient sigh.

"What're we doing next, boss?" She rolled her eyes irritably.

My current options flashed by in my mind. We could stay and continue hunting, or we could try to get Primo out. I already knew what I had to do, though. It was convincing them to help me or let me go.

"…There's no use sugarcoating it. All four of you know who and what I am, where I come from, and why I'm here. The boy I helped the Archadian guards capture is Primo. I'm not sure if it's the Primo I know, or the Primo from this dimension." I began explaining, and my audience exchanged glances between each other.

"So?" Tweed spoke, her voice still impatient.

"I have to save him. The Archadians will never let him go, even if he's just a boy. They'll execute him and his friend as rebels to the Empire. I'm going to help him. I'm not asking you four to come along…I'm asking you not to stop me or stand in my way." I finished with a sigh.

Vanille let out a giggle, and I looked up. Fang, Vanille, Four Eyes, and even Tweed all had supportive smiles on their faces.

"If you think that you're going to get all the damn Archadians to yourself, you're sorely mistaken." Fang told me with a laugh.

"You're our leader. You lead, we follow. Doesn't matter where." Four Eyes rolled her eyes with a smile.

"Besides, possibly failing and getting shot sounds more fun than sitting around here and twiddling our thumbs, boss." Tweed cracked her knuckles in anticipation.

I couldn't stop myself from smiling.

"…Thanks, guys. You're all good friends." I looked up and gave them an encouraging and confident grin before standing up.

"Let's kill some Archadians." Tweed let out a whoop and gestured for us to follow her.

I was increasingly made curious as she led us into the basement of the manor.

"We were going to tell you after the party." Fang whispered in my ear as we walked.

What awaited us was a large-scale hangar, right under the house.

A small cruiser, Archadian style, was waiting.

Like its predecessors, it was dark cobalt with plenty of fins to upgrade the aerodynamics of the ship.

"Spent over six hundred thousand gil for this bastard. Spent over four years upgrading the damn thing further than any moogle ever could. Took me quite a while to move it over to this place." Tweed showed us around the place.

Apparently, the hangar had been built long ago, and the main ship exit led right to a hidden cave entrance in the Dalmasca Westersands.

Tweed opened an entrance into the ship and began describing the entirety of the ship. It was a simple and very effective design due to the fact that despite its size it was incredibly fast and powerful.

"I'm not sure where our journey will lead us, but…it's good to have friends like you around." I turned to face my clan after a few minutes of studying the machine.

"Well, you're our boss, boss. Don't know what else we'd do." Four Eyes responded with a warm smile and nodded to Tweed.

"Are we all ready, then?" Fang questioned us, and everyone nodded.

Tweed disappeared into the bridge, and the ship turned on moments later.

The bridge was small but roomy, having a window that could view almost all the way down, up, left, and right. Not that the pilot would need it, of course, considering the maps lining the terminals.

Four Eyes manned a co-pilot seat, while Tweed motioned for us to sit in the other positions lined with terminals.

"Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seatbelts…this is gonna be one hell of a ride. It'll take us at least five hours to reach Nalbina Prison, assuming the weather is unchanged." She announced into a communicator that relayed her message throughout the entire ship.

With the familiar rumbling of the power systems turning on the airship, I sat in the remaining cockpit. It was there I realized it was also a turret seat. From there I controlled two large cannons, and had camera views of all directions that the guns could aim at.

"Liftoff!" Tweed whooped as the ship began floating. All systems were completely operational.

It was time.

"How fast should we go?" Four Eyes asked Tweed quickly, her hands typing furiously as she calculated the ship's coordinates and directions.

"Hmm…we'll go about seventy-five percent maximum. Don't want to go too fast and end up passing those wankers at Nalbina." She responded quickly, and gripped the controls tightly.

I gave a quick nod to Fang, who winked at me. Vanille, meanwhile, was already asleep. Big surprise.

"_Systems taking off…5…4…3…2…1…Goodbye._" A feminine mechanical voice announced just as we burst off through the tunnels at an unimaginable speed.

Before I knew it, we had travelled over three miles of underground passageway and were now in the Westersands.

"Now…we'll need to be accurate. Chart a course for the prison." I reminded our pilot, and she nodded respectfully.

_Another step closer, Primo. Another step closer._


	9. The Deathly Ballad of Giza Plains

"_Gaah!" An Archadian scout gasped his last words as I impaled him from behind, letting his dying body fall to the ground._

"_This is Abraham reporting in. We found another scout. They're making their move, Captain Basch. If we plan on surviving, it's time to get that damn Paling up." I spoke into my armband._

"_So it is. Fall back, commander. We'll need all swords ready for the attack." His voice crackled through._

_I turned toward the rest of my clan._

_Coela, Relek, Sylvia, Phoeba, and the rest of the Circle of Umbra stood at attention._

"_You heard em'. It's time. Now, we've all got our own specific jobs that need to be completed. Each of you will be assigned to a specific entrance or passage in the fortress. If any of us fail to protect that area, the chances of the operation succeeding are drastically reduced." I ordered, my voice rough and loud._

_They nodded obediently._

"_Relek, Sylvia, you two handle passages 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. Coela, you will lead our forces at the gate. I'll protect the Paling. Phoeba…kill em' all." I assigned them their jobs. The Bangaa and the Viera looked at each other with a nod. Coela gave me a nod as well. Phoeba smiled in that innocent and youthful way._

"_GO!" I yelled, and they scrambled off to take care of their charges._

_As the bulk of the Dalmascan soldiers gathered at the main gate, Coela arrived with the twenty members of the Circle. Each one of them had been trained to physical perfection and were imbued with dark powers. Entire armies would tremble before their presence._

_Relek and Sylvia were a fine combination; a powerful martial arts master with a green mage definitely were something to be feared._

_Phoeba was death incarnate; nothing and nobody would or could kill her._

_I climbed the steps of the main tower. The four priests had already begun their chanting. A golden shield was forming over the fortress, impenetrable to any attack their ships could use._

_In the distance, only about twenty minutes away, I saw the Archadian army. Their numbers were more than triple the size of the Dalmascan forces, and their aerial fleet made ours look like paper airplanes._

_I held out the Zodiac Spear and waited._

_This would be a battle that history would remember for ages. It would decide whether Archadia would take another nation and therefore take another step closer to annihilating Rozzaria, their sworn enemy._

"_Szu namis petriphilis minius…" I whispered the prayer, hoping whatever god existed up there would take mercy on us this night._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Abraham! Abraham!" I woke to Fang's screaming.

I jolted forward, and was shocked to see a disastrous turn of events.

We had crashed, the entire ship badly damaged.

Tweed was stumbling throughout the wreck, loudly cursing at every chance.

Fang and Vanille were around me, having tried to wake me up.

Four Eyes was holding a rifle and had stationed herself as the door.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Don't know. We were headed straight for Nalbina. Next thing I know, we're crashing into the Giza Plains." Tweed swore angrily, kicking a piece of rubble across the room.

"The ship's fine. The skystone's a little damaged, but the flight rings are intact. It'll take a few minutes for power to return to the primary source." Four Eyes sighed, her voice ragged and exasperated.

"Were we attacked?" I stood and stretched with some difficulty.

"No…it's like we were transported here, aimed right at the ground. Although, I've been hearing movement out there." As Tweed spoke, I noticed she was also hefting a rifle on her shoulder.

I looked out; my gaze only extended for about twenty meters, the rest shrouded in fog.

"We're about three miles from the nearest settlement, and seven miles from Rabanastre." Four Eyes calculated, fiddling with her armband hurriedly.

Just as the demolitions expert had said earlier, I could just barely hear faint movements and other sounds from beyond.

"Get the ship charged up. I've got a bad feeling about this." I told her and hopped out. A quick three-sixty turn told me that we appeared to be alone.

But I knew it wasn't true.

"Caius Ballad. Why has the Guardian of Death brought me here?" I allowed myself a short smile, and drew my swords. I turned instantly and blocked the giant greatsword he wielded.

I threw him back several feet with a push, and he landed gracefully.

"Y'know…I'm pretty sure you're supposed to show me some respect, Caius. As a Keeper of Suffering, I think you owe me allegiance." I greeted mockingly and sheathed my blades.

"As if…I owe your kind simply for the death of all life." His voice was short but silky, yet somehow strong and unyielding at the same time.

"What do you want? Why have you brought me here?" I asked nonchalantly, sliding a cigar out of my breast pocket.

"I understand you're looking for someone. Little kid, big sword…" He began as I lit the thick brown stick and slid it into my mouth.

"Now, where would you hear a thing like that?" I chuckled, taking a casual puff.

"One hears things." He answered mysteriously and I sighed, sending a ring of smoke towards him.

"We were headed to Nalbina. Kid I'm looking for is there." I relented.

He smiled in that strange way, menacing yet somewhat friendly and respectful, to me.

"He's actually about ten minutes away from here. Person you knocked out was just a lookalike. Dead as a dog in Nalbina Prison at this point. Lucky for you and him, eh?" He corrected with no small satisfaction.

"Good to know." I didn't trust Ballad as far as I could throw him, and that was quite a distance.

"I was just getting ready to have some fun with him, so I'd hurry up if you want to catch up." He hopped over the edge, disappearing into the mist with his last words.

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously in his direction, taking another leisurely puff of my cigar.

"Caius Ballad…we will meet again…" I turned away to rejoin my comrades after a few moments of thought.

"Who were you talking to?" Tweed demanded as I walked in past her.

"Old friend, new enemy." I answered dismissively, and pulled my map of the Giza Plains out.

"According to Caius, we're close to Primo. I had it wrong, girls." I sighed, sitting down heavily.

"Where is he?" Four Eyes looked at me quizzically.

"About ten minutes from our coordinates assuming the bastard's telling the truth, and I'm pretty damn sure he is. Caius isn't a liar." I stretched out, taking another puff.

"So what do we do now?" Fang asked curiously.

"Fang, Vanille, and Four Eyes…you stay behind and get this bucket of bolts working again. Tweed and I will go." I answered confidently, standing and moving for the door again.

"Say what?!" The four exclaimed in unison.

"The ship needs at least two people to pilot, and a third for support. Four Eyes is nearly as good as Tweed, and is much better at working the power systems. Tweed's the best with a sniper rifle, and she's also the only one who knows how to operate her armband radar." I explained impatiently, and they shrugged at each other.

"C'mon!" I hopped out and waved at Tweed to follow.

She dropped her wrench with an irate sigh, slung her scoped rifle around her shoulder, and grabbed her shotgun before joining me.

"We'll be back within twenty minutes. If we don't show up by then, take off without us and use the radar." I called out to Fang, and she nodded.

"Never took you for a smoker." Tweed commented shortly, looking at my cigar.

"Keeps me focused. Wouldn't advise it for anyone else, though. Only good thing for it is keeping my human side in control." I explained.

"What do you mean "keeps your human side in control"?" She looked confused.

"For people, the stuff does what you'd normally expect. However, with me…it acts as a focus. My…not-so-nice side starts overshadowing my view on reality sometimes. The chemicals and the effects from the cigar clear the haze. But again, I'm not advocating drug use. I've seen many good men and women ruin their lives because of this shit." I clarified.

"Hand me one, will ya?" She asked quickly.

"Didn't take you for a smoker." I commented sarcastically, but tossed her one.

"Haven't had a good smoke for the last season. Christine hates it when I smoke. Messes up her "concentration and her experiments". Dalmascan cigars are cheap and about as useful as a pile of Saurian shit." She confessed irritably, setting it alight with a silver engraved lighter from her coat pocket.

I smiled, drawing my swords and continuing into the mists.

"About six minutes in, half a mile or so, we'll finally get to the end of this wretched fog. Some say it's because a monster inhabits these lands and creates this unnatural mist so nobody can find it." Tweed mentioned, typing furiously at her armband.

"What the hell are those things, anyway?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Oh, some piece of crap we picked up back at our original home. I think it was called…Garden. Galbana? Galibine? Galbadia? Something like that." She explained.

"Well, let's hope your maps are reliable. When the Mist infests this place, my maps are about as reliable as the Archadian postal service." I muttered, taking cautious looks around me.

Hopefully we wouldn't be too late to the point of missing him entirely; assuming Caius was telling the truth.


End file.
